Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to a vertical axis hydropower system that may be installed along the bank of a river or channel, bridge piers, or side walls of existing hydraulic structures like bridge abutment, and spillways, for example.
Hydropower systems use the kinetic energy of water currents to generate electrical energy. These technologies represent an extremely viable opportunity to access clean and renewable energy from rivers, waves, and tidal currents. Utility scale technologies are capable of generating hundreds of kilowatts of energy, but also require large channels and flow volumes. Several of these projects have ongoing/high profile demonstration projects in large tidal channels including the East River in New York, the Juan de Fuca Strait Channel near Seattle, Wash., and the Chankoo Channel near Conception, Chile. These large systems have substantial technological and environmental barriers to overcome before measurable penetration of the technologies are realized.
Given that 900 million people in the tropics did not have access to electricity in 2010, harnessing energy from local streams and irrigation channels would have applicability on a global scale (McComiskie 2014). In addition to the need for alternative energy in underdeveloped communities, there is growing demand for low-impact renewable energy in developed economies. Specifically, in pristine, protected environments such as national parks or remote communities, local renewable energy is an attractive option, but current technologies often have non-negligible ecological impact, or may require massive power transmission costs.
There is a need for a hydropower system that is capable of producing electricity from hydrokinetic energy of water flows in streams and channels that has a low environmental impact, can adjust to flow variability, and can contribute to protecting stream-banks and preventing bank erosion.